Mariners acquire All-Star Yonder Alonso from Athletics

Alonso, 30, was an All-Star in Oakland, slashing .266/.369/.527 with 22 home runs and an .896 OPS.

Author:
Ashley Varela, NBC Sports , KGW

Published:
1:36 PM PDT August 6, 2017

The Mariners acquired first baseman Yonder Alonso from the Athletics in exchange for outfield prospect Boog Powell, the team announced Sunday.

FOX Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reports that the Mariners claimed Alonso on revocable waivers prior to working out a trade with the A’s, who were looking to clear space for outfielder Matt Olson.

Alonso, 30, slashed .266/.369/.527 with 22 home runs and an .896 OPS during his sophomore season in Oakland. He received his first All-Star nomination after heading into the midseason break with a .275 average and 20 home runs, and is on track for a career-best year after racking up 2.1 fWAR through his first 100 games.

Alonso will likely be used in a first base platoon with Danny Valencia, who’s mashing well against lefties despite holding a .266/.317/.418 batting line and just 12 homers on the year.

Powell, 24, was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma in mid-July after swatting a disappointing .194/.310/.194 through his first 23 games in the majors. His numbers inflated to a promising .340/.416/.490 through 58 games in the Pacific Coast League, but he has yet to prove he can rake consistently at the highest level.